Sir Nicholas Grimshaw awarded the 2019 Royal Gold Medal
|
| Sir Nicholas Grimshaw with the Royal Gold Medal 2019, image © Morley von Sternberg. |
Sir Nicholas Grimshaw was awarded the 2019 Royal Gold Medal at a ceremony at the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) on 14 February.
The Royal Gold Medal is the UK’s highest honour for architecture, presented by the RIBA in recognition of a lifetime’s work by a person who has had a significant influence on the advancement of architecture.
Nicholas Grimshaw has played a leading role in British architecture for more than half a century and is best-known for the International Terminal at London’s Waterloo station and the Eden Project in Cornwall.
He graduated with Honours from the Architectural Association in 1965. He immediately started in practice and won many awards for his early work. Grimshaw Architects was formed in 1980 and now employs more than 600 people in eight studios around the world and has won more than 200 awards. He was elected to the Royal Academy of Arts in 1994 and was its President from 2004 to 2011.
Lord Richard Rogers said: “I’ve known Nick since he was a student at the Architectural Association and followed his career closely. He is an internationally renowned architect and was an exceptional President of the Royal Academy. His buildings are outstanding, from the early residential tower in London to his many transportation hubs around the world.”
Lord Norman Foster said: “His architectural outlook is very much based in an honesty towards materiality and structure – like me, he believes that every type of building merits the same care in design.”
Coinciding with the presentation, the RIBA has opened a free exhibition charting the story of Grimshaw’s career from the 1960s to the present day. The exhibition explores his remarkable oeuvre through seminal works, with exclusive drawings, models and film.
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki
Featured articles and news
A safe energy transition – ECA launches a new Charter
Practical policy actions to speed up low carbon adoption while maintaining installation safety and competency.
Frank Duffy: Researcher and Practitioner
Reflections on achievements and relevance to the wider research and practice communities.
The 2026 Compliance Landscape: Fire doors
Why 'Business as Usual' is a Liability.
Cutting construction carbon footprint by caring for soil
Is construction neglecting one of the planet’s most powerful carbon stores and one of our greatest natural climate allies.
ARCHITECTURE: How's it progressing?
Archiblogger posing questions of a historical and contextual nature.
The roofscape of Hampstead Garden Suburb
Residents, architects and roofers need to understand detailing.
Homes, landlords. tenants and the new housing standards
What will it all mean?
The Architectural Technology podcast: Where it's AT
Catch-up on the latest episodes.
Edmundson Apprentice of the Year award 2026
Entries now open for this Electrical Contractors' Association award.
Traditional blue-grey slate from one of the oldest and largest UK slate quarries down in Cornwall.
There are plenty of sources with the potential to be redeveloped.
Change of use legislation breaths new life into buildings
A run down on Class MA of the General Permitted Development Order.
Solar generation in the historic environment
Success requires understanding each site in detail.
Level 6 Design, Construction and Management BSc
CIOB launches first-ever degree programme to develop the next generation of construction leaders.
Open for business as of April, with its 2026 prospectus and new pipeline of housing schemes.
The operational value of workforce health
Keeping projects moving. Incorporating unplanned absence and the importance of health, in operations.
A carbon case for indigenous slate
UK slate can offer clear embodied carbon advantages.
Costs and insolvencies mount for SMEs, despite growth
Construction sector under insolvency and wage bill pressure in part linked to National Insurance, says report.